The Wisconsin men’s soccer team got their second point at home this season with a tie against Penn State Saturday at McClimon Complex.
The Badgers rallied back and held on in double overtime to secure the 2-2 draw in front of the home crowd of 800. A red card left Wisconsin a man down for the end of regulation and during the overtimes.
The Badgers (4-9-3, 1-2-3 Big Ten) were coming off a three game away stretch, grabbing wins at St. Louis and UW-Milwaukee, while losing 2-0 to Ohio State. The Nittany Lions (6-6-3, 2-3-2 Big Ten) are reeling in the second half of the season, losing five of their last seven and dropping their postseason chances significantly. The tie keeps both teams steady near the top of the Big Ten Conference standings.
The first half was uneventful. The Badgers came off firing, tallying eight shots on the board before halftime and forcing the Nittany Lions into a defensive position. Penn State created a few close opportunities for themselves off a number of crosses, but much like Wisconsin in the first half, the Lions couldn’t complete any finishing touches. The 0-0 tie at half made the game seem almost destined for another late heartbreaker for the Badgers at home.
But the second half could not have been at-odds with the first, with both teams notching two goals alongside four yellow cards for both squads. Wisconsin struck first with Christopher Mueller side-stepping past the keeper to put one in at the 50-minute mark. The short home lead was not long-lived as Penn State returned the blow with a similar goal from Sam Bollinger just four minutes later to tie it up.
“We are capable of being up on a team like that, but you just can’t give it back to them so quickly,” head coach John Trask said. “As I told the guys, I guess I’m happy with a 2-2 tie with only 10 men available for overtime. I just don’t think it should have ever been 2-2.”
After the two teams traded shots, Penn State got in front with a beautiful curving goal from Drew Klingenberg in the 78th minute. But the Nittany Lions couldn’t hold onto the win and allowed a deflection off a shot from midfielder Mike Catalano with only six minutes left in the match.
Catalano was playing in his first game at home this season after an injury kept him out much of the year.
“It’s huge to get a guy like [Catalano] back in the lineup for that game,” Trask said. “If I’m ever critical of him, it’s because I think he is that talented and can have an effect on the game. Over a 90-minute period, he has a big effect on the game.”
Despite the comeback, Wisconsin entered overtime down a man when Drew Conner tripped a Penn State defender in the 87th minute to earn his second yellow card of game and ultimately an ejection.
Despite the setback, the Badgers held back the Nittany Lions’ attack and secured the 2-2 tie in the second overtime.
“We are finally getting everything back and firing on all cylinders,” Catalano said. “We have all bought back in and I’m excited for what’s going to happen. At the end of the day, we tied and we can’t be satisfied with that.”
